Developing new techniques for mapping soil loss and movement in Australia

This project will refine and extend the ability to quantify soil erosion and movement in Australia by measuring the extremely low concentrations of fallout isotopes which were deposited in soils across Australia in the 1950's and 1960's. The accelerator-based techniques developed will improve the capability to identify best practices to minimize erosion, particularly in larger more difficult river catchments. In a world-first, the potential of uranium-236 will be assessed as a new, complementary tracer, to open up new avenues of research into soil loss and transport.